


Mr. Hotchner

by Arelia_Luminot



Series: Anna Palustris [1]
Category: Criminal Minds
Genre: Accents, Crossdressing, Crossdressing Reid, M/M, Oblivious!Hotch, Southern Belle
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-12-30
Updated: 2015-12-30
Packaged: 2018-05-10 09:02:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,345
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5579485
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Arelia_Luminot/pseuds/Arelia_Luminot
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Aaron Hotchner isn't sure how (she? he?) knew his name, but he knew that they were very pretty and something about their brown eyes were very familiar.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Mr. Hotchner

**Author's Note:**

> If anything is portrayed incorrectly, please shoot us a comment or private message and we'll try to correct it!

“Can I get you a drink, Mr. Hotchner?”

Aaron Hotchner looked up, rather startled by the soft southern drawl that had addressed him. In the area that they were in, Southern Belles weren’t exactly common and the light lilt had him curious. The sight that greeted him surprised him. An angular face that spoke of slight masculinity, but plump lips, luscious eyelashes, and soft brunette hair spoke of femininity. The white, lacy dress that came to about lower thigh, upper knee insinuated slight curves but also showed a rather flat, or non-existent chest. His/her hair was curled in a fashion that reminded Hotchner of old black and white movies. But Hotch couldn’t bring himself to be too surprised. It had been Rossi who had recommended this bar after all…

“It’s been awhile since I’ve heard you talk about going out, Aaron. The weekend’s coming up! Go out and enjoy it!” Dave had suggested, tone holding a fond exasperation that Aaron was starting to associate with ‘nothing good’ and getting set up on blind dates. 

“I was actually planning on taking Jack to this science seminar coming up. He’s starting to take a really big interest in it.” After he had confessed to Doctor Reid that he didn’t understand his son’s homework and honestly couldn’t help the boy, the genius had been coming over to help. He should’ve known that Reid’d rope his son into being fascinated with the subject. 

“And after the seminar, you can drop him off at my place. I know this great club with women who would love to get their hands on a fed.” Dave had teased with a sly grin and a conspiratorial nudge.

“Actually, Dave… You know, ever since Hailey's death, um, I’ve kind of started questioning… You know?” Hotchner admitted. He knew that he could trust Rossi with this information. Only the slight twitch in his frown, and the loss of his ability to form words gave away how uncomfortable he was bringing this up. Realization dawned on his friends face and suddenly there was empathy there instead and a hand on his shoulder. 

“Then I know where you should go. This place is perfect for someone who is questioning. It’s a regular bar, but it’s mainly for those with homosexual tastes. It’s not bad, very classy as matter of fact. Looks can be deceiving though.” Dave warned and while Hotch had absolutely no idea what that meant, he nodded. To be honest, he was shocked that Dave knew of a place such as this, and he wasn’t to keen on questioning it. So, Aaron simply nodded, got the name of the bar, and went about his day. 

Which is how he ended up here, with a rather attractive person who knew his name despite the fact that they had never met before. This had already happened to him once, but that hadn’t ended so well. 

“And how exactly do you know my name?” He asked, quirking an eyebrow in question. The response was a flirty little laugh that made his own lips twitch, wanting to smile. The sound was a nice one. 

“Why Mr. Hotchner, ever since you ordered that drink you’ve been the most famous person present.” The person said, mimicking a southern accent nearly perfectly. Hotchner would have probably bought it, had it not been for his own small town upbringing.

“So the bartender fed you information about me?” Aaron asked, glancing at the man behind the bar. He noticed Aaron’s stare, and quickly became busy.

“Don’t be too upset doll, I have been told that I am quite the force to be reckoned with.” the pretend Southern Bell said, running perfectly manicured nails over the top of the fingers clutching Aaron’s glass. Usually, the fakeness would be a turn off. However, the accent wasn’t that far off, and this was a place where people were free to be something that either they weren’t allowed to be or weren’t often able to be. He knew that some people liked to crossdress, whether it be a kink or an actual gender affiliation. Maybe this person applied the accent to their female… persona. It wasn’t a bad thing and actually rather pretty. 

“I see. Well, it doesn’t seem polite that you know my name, and I don’t know yours.” Aaron said in a voice that he hoped came across as flirty. 

“Well, Mr. Hotchner, you can call me Anna Palustris,” Was given to him with a flirty smile and batting of the eyelashes, so it seemed his own flirting was coming across rather well. The name didn’t sit right with Aaron, but if his suspicions were right, this was not this person’s actual name anyways. It would be rude to ask, so he decided to leave it alone. 

“Well, shouldn’t I be buying you a drink, ma’am?” He teased lightly, taking a drink of the scotch that he had momentarily forgotten about. He was in attractive company, after all. 

“Well a lady never passes up on a good offer. I’ll have a Shirley Temple.” Hotchner chuckled and flagged down the bartender. After the drink was made, and sat down in front of Anna, the conversation resumed. By the end of the night Aaron was pretty sure he was addicted to a fake southern drawl, brown curls that bounced with laughter, and those oddly familiar eyes. He left the bar smiling at his phone, and the new number he was already fighting the urge to dial.

***

Two weeks. It had been two weeks since Hotch had met the beautiful Anna Palustris, and yet he was already fairly sure that he was falling in love. He now knew for a fact that Anna was indeed a male who had chosen to crossdress, and that this in no way changed the fact that Aaron was attracted to Anna. The only problem was that the closer Aaron tried to get, the further Anna seemed to pull away.  
At first, Anna had been happy to go on a few dates with him. They had coffee at a little shop, walked around a park, gone out for drinks, and even went book shopping once. But then Aaron had confessed that he would be open to pursuing a more stable relationship with her, and Anna had smoothly sidled her way out of the conversation. Aaron was starting to wonder if he had done something wrong, or if Anna had had a bad past relationship and she just wasn’t ready to pursue something more serious. Or if there was something that she was hiding. Maybe he hadn’t made it clear that he didn’t care that she also identified as male. He decided that enough was enough though, and texted Anna that he wanted to meet after work at the cafe. After receiving a confirmation text, Aaron stood up from his desk and walked out of his office.

Not surprisingly, he found his team crowded around Spencer Reid’s desk. The whole team had been acting weird lately, and Hotchner was beginning to worry. He knew Reid didn’t often go to others for help, but he had always liked to think that the genius would turn to him if things got too bad. Yet for some reason Reid hadn’t been able to look him in the eye for at least a week now. Hotchner sighed as he walked towards the team.

“The case is over. Don’t you people have lives?” He teased, trying to ignore the guilty looks that were being thrown towards him.

“We’re just trying to get pretty boy here out and about.” Derek told him, flicking the ponytail that Spencer had tied his hair up in while doing paperwork. He gave the genius a meaningful look, one that had Aaron confused as Spencer shot not only Derek but all of the team a glare. 

“I can handle this just fine, actually. Don’t worry about it, Hotch.” Spencer brushed it off easily. Aaron was terribly confused, unsure what his team was up to and unsure if he even wanted to know when Dave spoke up. 

“You’re leaving already? You’re usually not out of here until at least nine and it’s only seven. What’s going on, Aaron? Got a meeting with that pretty lady friend of yours?” The teasing tone had Aaron flustered slightly and he cleared his throat.

“I do, actually, so I really should get going. Just...Reid? Morgan? Don’t blow anything up. I know how your prank wars can get.” He joked, before walking off. He was sort of dreading this meeting, as he was unsure how it would go. What if she had decided this was something that she just wasn’t prepared for? What if she didn’t want to be a parent? After all, children weren’t for everyone, and he didn’t blame them, but Jack was his whole world. Some people couldn’t get past a thing like that. 

He hadn’t realized how hard it was for a single parent to date. He was worried because he didn’t want to force his life on Anna, so he decided that if she was not willing to take the relationship further, that he would not hold it against her. He would even try to remain her friend, even though he knew that never really worked out. 

Aaron ordered his coffee and took a booth at the back of the shop. He sat there staring at his coffee, wondering how the conversation when he heard someone clear their throat. He looked up and was confused to find Dr. Spencer Reid standing bashfully in front of him. 

“Reid?” He asked in a concerned voice. He had only seen Reid looking this shaken a handful of times.

“Can… can I sit down?” Reid asked nervously. Aaron nodded and watched as Reid slipped into the booth across from him and began to pick at his nails.

“Is there something wrong Spencer?” He asked, glancing around as though the reason that Spencer was so jumpy would stand out. He knew that this was ridiculous, but he couldn’t help it. He had always been protective of Reid, but it had gotten worse after Hankel, and worse still after what had happened to Haley. 

“Please don’t hate me.” Reid said, his eyes meeting Aaron’s. Aaron was too startled by the sudden outburst to notice how familiar Spencer’s gaze was.

“Why would I hate you Spencer?” He asked, deciding that it would be best to approach this gently.

“Because my mother’s name is Diana. While the most popular nickname given to a woman with this name is Die, Anna is used as well.” Reid explained in a rush. Aaron raised an eyebrow and motioned for him to continue.

“And a Palustris is a plant that indigenous to bogs, much like a reed.” Spencer finished, turning back to picking the familiar pearl colored polish off of his nails.

It took a moment for Aaron to process this, and then a few minutes more for him to calm himself. His first assumption was that it had been a joke, but he quickly ruled that out, because he knew Spencer would never do something like that. But then…

“Why?” Aaron asked.

“Well to be honest, I didn’t think that we would actually get along. I mean Anna has always just been a way for me to loosen up around people, but I thought that we already knew each other so well, that nothing could change.” Spencer explained awkwardly, not looking at Aaron.

“How long has Anna existed?” Aaron asked, feeling curious. Yes he had other things he wanted to ask, but to think that someone he worked so closely with could hide something like this from him was a bit shocking.

“Since my first year of college.” Spencer replied. Aaron took a deep breath and took a drink from his coffee. 

“So all the flirting?” Aaron asked, steeling himself for the answer. It was then that Spencer finally looked at him. Guilt and pain were written all over his face.

“I’ve always had a crush on you Hotch. Even before… before you were single. Everyone knew about it. Gideon was the first person to ever say anything to me about it. I’m so sorry.” Spencer buried his face in his hands.

Aaron drank the rest of his coffee as he let the words sink in. How had he never noticed that Spencer was attracted to him? Now that he thought about it, he could pinpoint many times when he should have figured it out. 

But what Aaron really needed to ask himself, was if this changed the way he felt. Could he really see himself in a serious relationship with Dr. Reid? Yes, Aaron had always thought that Spencer was attractive. He had even discussed whether or not Spencer would have made a good model with Haley when she had been alive. He already knew that Jack loved Spencer and vice versa, plus he already knew the genius wanted kids, so he didn’t think that he had to worry about that.

“I’m not sure if I’m angry that you withheld information from me, or because I failed to realize that it was you.” he finally said, causing Spencer to release a shaky laugh. 

“Well I did make it as hard for you as possible, Mr. Hotchner.” Reid replied, and despite the fact that he said it in his own voice, and without a southern accent, it still sent shivers through Aaron.

“I’m not quite sure what to think about all of this to be honest, but I don’t want to lose you Spencer. Not as a colleague, or a friend.” Spencer nodded in understanding and sighed in relief.

“And, I wouldn’t be too opposed to a date.” Hotchner smirked, looking at the young man sitting across from him. Spencer’s head jerked up, and his wide shocked eyes met Hotchner’s. In a blink the shock was gone, and a familiar flirtatious smile appeared.

“Why, Mr. Hotchner, are you asking me on a date?” Spencer asked in Anna’s voice, and Aaron couldn’t help but to smile wider.


End file.
